If you can only take one lens, this is it

So great, we bought two. Lovely images, fast AF, great weight, smooth zoom. Continues to surprise me. One of the best camera lenses of all time.

Agreed. I love my copy that I've had for quite a while. My lives on my 5D Mark IV. Not sure there is a better mid range fast zoom that is any better in any companies portfolio.

You will get lots of use out of it. Enjoy.

Steve W

This is one of the best lenses, perhaps the best of this type.  Such a great design!  And much better than the lens it replaced (version I).

Silvex wrote:

...1 1/2 complaints and a wish.

1- No IS. C'mon Canon! Even the third party guys can do it.

1/2 - Plastic filter threads. Let's hope this is never a problem.

Wish it had a Nano USM motor.

The third party ones with IS are bigger and when the Canon originally came out IS for 24-70 still impacted IQ and Canon and other brands decided to forgo IS to offer the maximum image quality.

Never had any real issues with Canon filter threads over a very long period of using their L glass. You shouldn't either.

I am not familiar with the Nano USM motors other than its is better optimized for Video. The Ring-Type USM motors are tried and true and offer great full-time manual. Based on what I've seen I am not sure Nano can support large heavy elements like you see in a f/2.8 24-70mm. Maybe Canon will plan an update. I can see your desire if you are a videographer. As a photographer I really like the ring-type USM.

Steve

Silvex wrote:

Steve W wrote:

Silvex wrote:

...1 1/2 complaints and a wish.

1- No IS. C'mon Canon! Even the third party guys can do it.

1/2 - Plastic filter threads. Let's hope this is never a problem.

Wish it had a Nano USM motor.

The third party ones with IS are bigger and when the Canon originally came out IS for 24-70 still impacted IQ and Canon and other brands decided to forgo IS to offer the maximum image quality.

That's interesting. I didn't know that. How can I find out more?

I think to find out more your going to have to compare several 24-70 f/2.8 without IS to several with and look at the size and weight differences.  For full frame I believe the Canon is the smallest and lightest and the Nikon and Tamron that have IS are both bigger and heavier. I own the Sony one as well that has no IS but the body has built in IS so you get the best of both. That lens I am familiar with have the following weight.

Canon L II  - 805g

Tamron SP Di VC G2 - 904g (EF mount)

Nikkor AF-S VR - 1070g

Sony FE GM - 886g

Back when Canon came out with theirs and then Tamron followed there was a lot of discussion on how IS impacted the lens IQ for the 24-70 focal length.

Never had any real issues with Canon filter threads over a very long period of using their L glass. You shouldn't either.

I am not familiar with the Nano USM motors other than its is better optimized for Video. The Ring-Type USM motors are tried and true and offer great full-time manual. Based on what I've seen I am not sure Nano can support large heavy elements like you see in a f/2.8 24-70mm. Maybe Canon will plan an update. I can see your desire if you are a videographer. As a photographer I really like the ring-type USM.

I have one lens with a nano usm motor. It's the AF is as fast or faster than any of my L class lenses. It very well could be an engineering limitation. Or it could be that Canon wants to protect their high-end video camera business. I really don't know which it is. That's why it falls in the 'wish' bucket.

Steve

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Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I’m not sure about the universe! - Words to live by. Albert Einstein

V1 was the best at the time, and is still very good.

I don't miss v1's weight or ƒ2.8 softness, but I do miss the 'perfect' lens hood design - at 24mm the front element extended OUT so the big & deep lens hood didn't block the view. Zoom in, and the front element moves IN giving you a series short telephoto lens hood.

Genius - a watershed zoom design, but not one anyone else copied and Canon was unable to repeat.

Despite its insane optical performance, the L vII is pretty plain jane on the lens hood / flare protection waterfront.

Can't have enverything.

justlikeit wrote:

V1 was the best at the time, and is still very good.

I'm not sure about that. I recall many people (including me) complained about the 24-70/2.8L going out of calibration and contributing to mis-focused shots. The Nikon version seemed to be more reliable back then.

I didn't like the huge hood on V1 although I know it was more functional.

V2 on the other hand is sharp and reliable, has nice bokeh, and is lighter & smaller. An amazing achievement.

Lee Baby Simms wrote:

So great, we bought two. Lovely images, fast AF, great weight, smooth zoom. Continues to surprise me. One of the best camera lenses of all time.

I tend to agree. Instead of the kit 24-105, newcomers with deep pockets should consider the 24-70 f/2.8L II, It is a high-end pro lens, even though I wish it had IS and the longer focal length.

2.8 to slow for me

Shooting in a dungeon? Or in a really crappy location you don't want to see in the photos?

Yes I shoot in wine cellars a lot.

Lee Baby Simms wrote:

Shooting in a dungeon? Or in a really crappy location you don't want to see in the photos?

also look into the 300L and 300 L IS, basically the same optical formula aside from the added optical group for the IS mechanism, the 300L IS has worse image quality than its non-IS predecessor.